I Love You
by ZoneFics
Summary: Erza gave Mirajane a sad smile "I can't give Lucy what she wants the most. I can stop dragons and armies, but I can't say three simple words." ErLu Oneshot


Disclaimer: Nothing belongs to me

Copyrighting not intended

Quick one shot that's been floating in my head for a while

* * *

"Hey" Lucy giggled wrapping her arms around Erza's waist.

"Hey yourself" Erza tilted her head back, kissing Lucy on the lips. "How was the mission?"

"Good." Lucy shrugged taking a seat next to Erza. "We actually got the reward this time"

"Oh really?" Erza took a mouthful of a cake, her eyebrows raised in surprise. "Natsu didn't destroy much this time?"

"Yeah. Hopefully it stays this way for a while. My rent is due soon." Lucy sighed, stretching her arms.

"My offer still stands you know" Erza spoke, still munching on her cake "You could move in with me at Fairy Hills. I have more than enough space and it'll save you some rent."

" I know, but I'm not ready for that." Lucy fibbed.

In actual fact, Lucy was all too ready to move in with her girlfriend of 8 months, but there was one thing stopping her. In all their 8 months as a couple, not once had Erza said the words "I love you." Each time Lucy said "I love you" Erza always replied with "Me too" or "I know" or "I feel the same", never had the words "I love you" left Erza's lips. It was bugging Lucy more than it should, considering that Erza was almost the perfect girlfriend. She knew Lucy's like and dislikes, taking time from from training to bring her shopping or to the spa, and brought her to the most beautiful places to for dinner and to watch the sunset. Yet all Lucy wanted to hear was those 3 words from Erza. She wanted to know that Erza was on the same commitment level as her. If Erza couldn't say "I love you" what hope did they have of remaining together?

"I love you Erza" Lucy sighed, leaning her head on Erza's shoulder.

"Hmm" Erza smiled "I know."

Lucy huffed silently, Erza not taking any notice of Lucy's odd behavior.

"You've been loving me a lot lately" Erza spoke absentmindedly, spearing the last piece of her cake "Is there something I'm forgetting?"

"Maybe?" Lucy decided to test her luck, hopefully she could get Erza to say them.

"Hmm it's not any of our birthdays." Erza mused "8 months is not much of an anniversary, the next one would be 4 months from now..."

Erza continued to mutter dates and times under her breath, her brows furrowing as she tried to think of what she might have forgotten. "I'm sorry Lucy, I can't figure out what I might have forgotten."

"Do you love me?" Lucy asked suddenly, looking seriously at Erza.

"Of course I do." Erza replied a little confused at the sudden change in topic "You know that."

"No I don't " Lucy shook her head, finally letting her feelings spill. "I don't because you've never once said it. In the entire 8 months we've been together, you've never said it once."

"Lucy, is this what this is about?" Erza set down her fork, turning in her seat to face Lucy "My feelings for you are as strong as yours are for me. There's no doubt about it"

"Then say it" Lucy challenged Erza, refusing to back down.

Erza frowned "Does it mean that much to you if I say it or not?"

"Yes!" Lucy exclaimed a little too loudly, catching the attention of several guild members. "I want to hear you say it Erza. We've been dating for 8 months. Isn't that a long enough time to figure out your feelings?"

"It has nothing to do with how I feel about you" Erza shook her head, looking mighty uncomfortable.

"Then why is it so hard for you to say it?" Lucy sighed exasperated "It's just 3 words. 'I love you'. See!" She punctuated each word clearly, Erza clearly getting more and more uncomfortable.

The armored knight lowered her head, pressing her lips together tight. "Lucy.. I.. I.." She lifted her head, her shoulders tensed "I.. I can't say it." her shoulders sagged down, defeated.

Lucy frowned, angry. "Fine." She slipped of her seat angrily "We're done."

"Wait.. Lucy." Erza's head shot up quickly "Just hear me out."

"I'm done trying to listen, Erza." Lucy whirled around angrily jabbing a finger into Erza's plated chest. "If you can't even say it, we're over."

"You can't break up with me over something like this!" Erza responded, gathering some unwanted attention from the guild

"Then say it!" Lucy pushed once more, given Erza one last chance.

"I.. I…." Erza gritted her teeth, shaking her head "I can't Lucy… I can't.. Give me a chance to -"

SLAP

The sound rang loudly, echoing in the guild hall. All fell silent, eyes widening, stifling gasps and Lucy stalked angrily out of the guild, leaving a rather depressed looking Erza standing by the bar. Her cheek an angry red from where Lucy's hands had left a stinging print on her skin.

"Erza. What happened?" Mirajane came out from behind the bar, resting a hand on Erza's shoulder.

"I couldn't say it." Erza muttered "I can't say what Lucy wants to hear."

"Did you try explaining it to her?" Mirajane knew the reason behind Erza's reluctance, a story not many people knew.

Shaking her head sadly, Erza sighed "She won't listen to me." Her voice was small, unlike the strong knight everyone was used to. "Maybe this is for the best."

"Erza!" Mirajane gasped in shock "What are you saying? You know that's not true!"

Erza gave her a sad smile "I can't give Lucy what she wants the most. I can stop dragons and armies, but I can't say three simple words." She shook her head, her eyes filled with pain

"Erza, go talk to her." Mirajane coaxed the depressed knight "Lucy will understand. She's just running on emotions right now. You know she doesn't really want to break up. She wants you to go after her."

"If I can't tell Lucy how much I... "Erza struggled with herself "care for her. I have no right to be with her. She deserves someone who can tell her that everyday of her life."

"That's not something you can control. Lucy isn't that selfish, and I know for a fact Lucy loves you deeply."

"I know" Erza's shoulders sagged even further "She tells me that everyday." Her voice went even smaller.

"Then go after her"

Erza nodded slowly. "She's mad at me. You think she'll still listen to me? What if it doesn't work?"

"I know it will." Mirajane smiled "It worked on me."

Erza chuckled lightly despite her mood. "Thanks Mira, I owe you."

* * *

"Lucy? What are you doing here alone? Where's Erza?" Mirajane called out when she spotted Lucy sitting on the steps near Fairy Hills.

"She doesn't want to see me" Lucy groaned, running her fingers through her hair "She completely ignoring me. She won't even acknowledge my presence. I've been knocking on her door for the past hour, and she not in any of her usual places." Lucy sighed again, her head dropping into her hands "I messed up."

"What are you talking about?" Mirajane was confused. "Didn't you see Erza earlier? She was going after you to explain herself."

Now it was Lucy's turn to give Mirajane a bewildered look "Erza was coming after me? I didn't see her at all. I was by our spot by the lake thinking for the past couple hours before I decided to look for her." Lucy frowned "I wanted to apologize for blowing up at her. I should have stayed to listen to her. I'm sure she has a reason right? This is Erza we're talking about." Lucy frowned, remembering the times were Erza didn't make a whole lot of sense "Okay maybe not, but she must have a reason if she can't say it to me."

"Is she mad?" Lucy groaned once more

"She was worried about the exact same thing" Mirajane laughed at the similarities between the two. "She was so afraid that you wouldn't listen to what she had to say."

"Do you know what she wanted to tell me?" Lucy asked quietly, eyes fixed on the ground before her.

Mirajane fell silent, but nodded "I don't know if you should be hearing this from me."

The tone of Mirajane's voice indicated that it was serious, and Lucy nodded "Tell me Mira. Does this have anything to do with our fight?"

"How much do you know of Erza's time in the Tower of Heaven?" Mirajane asked her tone gravely serious

"Just what the guild knows." Lucy shook her head "Is there more she's not telling me"

"Firstly," Mirajane started "Lucy, you have to understand that the Tower of Heaven is not an easy topic for Erza, especially certains events."

The celestial wizard nodded, knowing how private Erza was with her experience in the Tower of Heaven. Lucy herself had only caught Erza sobbing in her sleep whenever she slept over at Erza's, or when Erza slept over at her place. The knight never spoke about it, and Lucy stopped asking after a while, respecting Erza's privacy. Erza told her snippets occasionally, when the nightmares got really bad, but nothing that would help Lucy understand Erza's inability to utter the words 'I love you'.

"This is something extremely private for Erza, and I know she much rather tell you herself." Mirajane continued "It is not something she wants others to know. I didn't know until Master told me to get me to stop teasing her about it."

"Erza wouldn't say it back then either" Lucy looked at Mirajane in surprise, "And you teased her about it?"

"I was a menace back then" Mirajane smiled, fond of the memories "but we were family despite our constant bickering, and it's not something I would use against her. Erza wasn't happy when she realized I knew, but I think she was sort of glad I stopped making fun of her for it."

"What did Master tell you?" Lucy wanted to know so badly. Erza's pain was her pain, and Lucy loved Erza deeply to want to understand everything about the knight.

"She was tortured for several days after she took the blame for a botched escape attempt." Mirajane frowned, turning her gaze to the hands in her lap "She lost her right eye during that session."

"I know." It always made Lucy feel ill thinking about the monsters that would put a child through such horrible pain "She told us."

"What she didn't mention is the rest of the torture." Lucy saw the anger raging in Mirajane's eyes. She was angry for Erza, not pitying the knight for what she had been through "They messed with her head. Screwed up the memories she had. They made her relive the happiest memories of her life and twisted them in the worst ways possible. You should have seen when Erza first arrived at the guild. She refused to talk because she was so convinced that if she spoke, people around her die."

"I.. I didn't know that. Erza never had a problem speaking her mind " Lucy mumbled, trying to process the new information.

"Erza's parents were affectionate, with each other and Erza too. I'm guessing that having her memories messed with left Erza with the irrational logic she has now. She used to flinch every time she said something affectionate. Words like 'love', 'like', 'hugs', ''family' it would all set her off." Mirajane sighed "Erza didn't speak for two years. It took another 3 years for her to speak normally."

"Why didn't she say anything!" Lucy was horrified at the idea that her affection might have been causing Erza pain.

"It doesn't affect her as much now, I don't think she minds anymore" Mirajane tried to calm Lucy down "She loves it when you show affection for her, I can see it in her eyes, it's just.. hard for her to overcome this alone. With no one that knew about it, Erza has always been dealing with it alone."

"You knew!" Lucy pointed out

"I wasn't suppose to know. And Erza made me promise not to meddle in her affairs. I've never seen it affect her too much, so I didn't say anything." Mirajane shrugged "Not until now. Lucy, right now you're the only one that can help Erza overcome this. She loves you, more than anything else. Don't give up on her." Mirajane was pleading for Erza, and Lucy lowered her head.

"I don't even know where she-"

"Mira-nee! Lucy! Finally!" Lisanna ran up to them panting "There's been a major attack on Magnolia Station. We need to get down there!."

"What?!" Mirajane stood up in shock. "What happened?"

"Someone hijacked a train from the next city. The guilds there managed to save everyone, but the culprits made off with the the first cabin of the train " Lisanna spoke hurriedly "It would have smashed right into The Magnolia Express had Erza-san not slowed it down enough for the civilians to evacuate "

"Erza's there?" Lucy exclaimed, grabbing Lisanna's shoulder "Is she hurt?"

"Lisanna." Mirajane interrupted when her youngest sibling fell quiet "What happened?"

"Erza-san is.." Lisanna choked on her words, wringing her hands together nervously "She held on until the last minute for the evacuation. She didn't have time to avoid the collision. Erza-san got pinned between the two trains."

"What about the civilians?" Mirajane asked worriedly, catching Lucy as her legs failed her.

"There were a couple of casualties" Lisanna spoke sadly "A lot of people were injured in the crash, but most managed to get out before impact."

"I need to be there" Lucy mumbled rushing towards the station."

She didn't even register Lisanna calling after she as she rushed through the city in the direction of black smoke. "Natsu.. Natsu!" She stumbled through the crowd, grabbing the boy by the shoulders "Where's Erza?"

He gulped, pointing to the end of the station "They're still trying to get her out... Lucy?.. Lucy!"

Weaving through the crowds of injured civilians, all Lucy could think of was Erza. How she wished Erza wouldn't be so selfless and not stopped the train. That was impossible. Erza's selflessness was one of the things that Lucy loved about the red head.

She spotted Elfman and Wendy near the crash, metals twisting out in every direction like a monster. Elfman was throwing out twisted metal bars and shells out of the way while Wendy knelt down atop the mass of metal, her hands glowing. Erza was hidden from Lucy's sight, making the celestial mage even more worried

"Lucy-san." Wendy spotted Lucy running over. "Be careful! The whole thing is unstable."

"Erza? Erza?! Are you okay?" Lucy shouted hysterically, stopping just shy of the metal pile up.

"Lucy? Is that you?" Erza's voice floated over, as clear as day.

"Wendy, how bad is it?" Lucy asked worriedly, seeing the blood on Wendy's hands

"I'm fine Lucy." Erza chuckled, the grimace in her voice evident " Just really uncomfortable"

"Then all that blood?" Lucy couldn't think straight, speaking whatever came to her mind

"Erza-san is fine." Wendy reassured her "Nothing too serious right now. A couple of bad cuts. A metal bar has gone through her shoulder, but I don't think it hit anything major. She can feel her legs, nothing seems to hurt too badly, she'll be okay." As if to support Wendy's statement, Erza lifted her uninjured arm, waving in the air to signal that she was fine.

Lucy nodded, feeling relieved, sinking to her knees. "Thank goodness."

"Lucy?" Erza spoke once more. Just hearing her voice calmed Lucy down "I'm sorry about earlier, I'll explain -"

"Mira told me everything." Lucy answered "It's my fault. I'm sorry I got mad. Why didn't you tell me before?"

"I was afraid you wouldn't see me the same way." Erza sighed, wincing as Elfman jostled the metal near her on accident, metal pieces digging into her skin "I don't need to be coddled or pitied."

"Erza… I would never." Lucy shook her head even though Erza couldn't see her.

"I know. I just didn't want to burden you with it" Erza sighed sadly.

"Look where you ended up" Lucy grumbled, the banter already making her feel like herself again.

"Watch out!" a loud warning echoed as the unstable wreck began to shake. Loud crashes echoed through the station as one of the cabins collapsed on itself, shaking the entire station.

Elfman caught Wendy who gave him an appreciative glance before hurriedly turning to Erza, who had turn a deathly shade of white.

"Erza-san? What's wrong?" Wendy panicked upon the sudden change in Erza's condition.

"Something must have pierced my leg during the crash." She grimaced painfully "I.. I didn't feel it before but.."

"Elfman-san, please hurry!" Wendy spoke hurriedly, trying to keep Erza stable as he head fell back, hitting the metal shell of the train she was pinned to "She's bleeding out!"

"What?" Lucy exclaimed from the side "You said she was fine."

"The quaking must have shifted something inside that's pinning Erza-san to the wreck. It was fine before, but now she's losing blood because it's moved" Wendy shouted down.

"I can't go any faster!" Elfman started ripping the wreck apart." I won't be able to balance the wreck if I head straight for Erza. We'll all be in danger!"

"No..." Lucy stood up, pulling out her keys. "Taurus, Gemini" She summoned the two spirits. Help Elfman free Erza. Hurry!"

"You got it!" Taurus made no perverted joke this time, merely flexing his muscles. Gemini took on Elfman's form and the three of them tore through the wreck as quickly and as safely as they could.

"Natsu! Gray!" Get over here!" Elfman bellowed

The two immediately appeared, their faces grim. "What can we do?"

"Gray, freeze the entire side here."Elfman ordered, "Taurus and I will bust through the frozen metal. Natsu, help Gemini on that side, melt through anything that's holding you back."

With Elfman taking charge and Natsu and Gray in the mix, the 5 managed to separate the front of the wreck, finally seeing the full extent of Erza's wounds. A jagged pipe had gone through Erza's right thigh, blood pouring heavily from the wound. Wendy hurriedly made her way down to the wound's level, pressing her lips together. Lucy managed to make her way towards Erza too, tightly holding her hands and whispering words into her ear.

"I've been through worse" Erza chuckled at Lucy's worried face "I'll be fine."

"I'll believe you when you're not pale and bleeding out over a train wreck!" Lucy nearly shrieked with worry. "Wendy? How does it look?"

"It must have nicked an artery." Wendy shook her head. "I can't heal it like that." We need to pull the pipe out."

"Can we even do that?" Gray asked worriedly " What if it attached to something behind?"

"It's fine!" Gemi and Mini called out from the bottom of the wreck. "It's not connected to anything down here. Nothing for it to catch on to either."

Wendy gulped. "This is important, Elfman-san. I need you to pull it straight out as quick as you can."

Elfman nodded, wrapping his hands around the pipe, waiting for Wendy's signal.

"Natsu-san, Gray-san" She addressed the other two. I need you two to hold Erza-san down. Prevent her from moving as much as you can."

Natsu and Gray nodded, but Wendy could tell they were worried about going up against Erza's inhuman strength "With all the blood she's lost, I don't think she has much strength left. Try not to move Erza-san. This will most definitely hurt." Wendy turned her attention to Lucy. "Try to keep Erza-san distracted. Anything to keep her mind off what we're doing"

Nodding numbly Lucy turned to Erza, Who was growing paler by the second. "Look at me Erza. You'll be fine"

"I know." Erza gave a tired smile "Come closer."

Lucy leaned in closer as per Erza's request. She could feel Erza's labouring breathing, and she tightened her grip on Erza's hand.

"I need you to know." Erza whispered, her eyes closing, half lidded "I really.. do.. care for you… I..lo..v -"

Elfman ripped out the pipe in one move. Erza jerked violently, her lips parting in an anguished scream. Natsu and Gray held on as tight as they could, and though Erza was injured, it was still no easy feat. Wendy tried not to blanch as Erza's blood splattered over her, focusing in closing the wound before Erza's bled out. All Lucy could do was to hold on to Erza, and watch as Erza fought for her life.

"I'm sorry." Those were the last words Lucy heard before Erza passed out, head leaning heavily on Lucy.

"Erza!"

* * *

Looking up at the statue of Erza, Lucy frowned. It had been a year since the incident, and the city of Magnolia had erected a statue of Erza in the middle of the station for saving thousands of lives. Each time she passed the statue, Lucy would frown, memories of the crash emerging in her head. It was one of the worst feelings she had ever felt, watching Erza bleed out on the train, not able to help at all.

"I wish they didn't build this." A voice grumbled from behind her, arms wrapping around her waist.

"You're a hero, Erza." Lucy turned to face the scarlet knight, a smile on her face "Its the city's way of acknowledging your actions."

"It makes you sad." Erza stated simply, intertwining their fingers and leading Lucy away

"That's because you almost died" Lucy moved closer to Erza, sighing "I thought you died when you passed out."

Erza lowered her head, "Sorry for worrying you."

Lucy stopped, turning to face Erza. Tiptoe-ing, Lucy pressed a kiss onto Erza's lips, throwing her hands around Erza's neck. Erza responded in kind, arms wrapped around Lucy's waist.

"I love you Erza." Lucy sighed, resting her head on Erza's chest.

"I know." Erza replied simply

The celestial mage smiled "Come on. Let's go grab some cake. I know you love the strawberry cake they have at the cafe down the street. It's a little sweet for me though. I guess that's okay, since you have a sweet tooth"

"It's not that sweet." Erza shrugged "You're sweeter."

Lucy blushed. "Come on you stupid romantic, let's go get some cake."

It was a far cry from the words Lucy wanted to hear in the beginning, but Erza though scarred, had her own way of showing her affections, and Lucy was okay with that. They would deal with it slowly, together, but for now. Lucy was just glad Erza was still by her side, alive.

"Lucy?"

The celestial mage realized Erza wasn't following her, instead she was standing in the middle of the road, head lowered bashfully.

"What's wrong?" Lucy walked back with an amused smile "Don't feel like having cake today?"

Erza frowned, looking really nervous. She took Lucy's hand in hers, and with a small glow, pulled out a box from her pocket dimension. It wasn't a ring box for it was rectangular, and Lucy stared curiously at it.

"I.. know I still can't say it" Erza muttered "I don't know if I ever will be able to, but " She opened the box, revealing a beautifully intricate diamond encrusted locket sitting in the middle of the box. Erza pulled it out, revealing a delicate chain. She pressed it into Lucy's hand, leaving the celestial mage to flip it open. "I thought this might be good." Erza stumbled over her words, her face red.

Inside the locket was a beautiful picture of the two of them, smiling broadly, engraved on the other side were 3 simple words, 'I love you' . Lucy gasped at the beautiful gift, hand over her mouth in shock.

"Erza! How much did this cost you?"

The scarlet knight gently took the locket from Lucy's hand, attaching it around her neck "Enough" She shrugged "I had some cash lying around."

Lucy snaked her arms around Erza's waist. "I love it. Thank you."

"I'm glad." Erza nodded "It wasn't easy getting it made, but it was worth it."

"I really love you Erza, more than anything" Lucy kissed Erza passionately

"I know."


End file.
